Improvement in repeating ordnance



7 JAMES I .FATIT N M L AiF E RY "GUN.

Emma JUL 41871 i fl JAMES PATToN TAYLOR.

0/ a H ----l 7 PlmNTEn JUL 41371 ////////////r///////////// r, ///40 n n i a Wm UNITED a STATES [PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES PA'TON TAYLOR, OF ELIZABE'IHTON, 'll lSNlCSSEE, -(hSlGNOlt TU lll.\l SELF AND NA'lllANl'Eli (i. TAYLOR, ()l" SAME lli.\(l.

IMPROVEMENT lN-REPEATING ORDNANCE.

Specification forming part of Letters Put-cut, No. 116,775, dated July 4, 1971.

' gun, adapted to deliver fire from a. large number of barrels, either simultaneously or successively, as desired, and to maintain such fire for a lengthened period with great rapidity. The gun is constructed with a stationary frame-work of requisite'strength, consisting vof a breech-plate extending fromlthe breech of the gun proper downward to the level of the magazines, and slottedto permitthe rotation of a many-cham- I bered breech-plate, which receives the cartridges t'rom the ma azines and carries them up into position for tiring; an extension behind the upper part of the brecch-plate to contain. and guide the tiring nn-chanism'; acradle, 'which receives the. magazines and guides the rammers or feeders by which cartridges are ibrwarded to the breechpiece chambers; and a. brace which connects the said cradle and the ln-cech-extension, and afibrds a bearing for a cmnpound shaft, through which' the chainln-rcd breechpimse is revolved and the sinmltamaous tiring mcchanisi is worked. The barrels are connected to the slotted breech-plate, and are incioscd within a casino-. This entire frame-work may rest in i'ront by trunnions in a bracket piifated vertically in the axle of the gun- Carria, e, and be supported at back by the ele- Vati'mscrecl bathe trail, or the gun may be moun ed in any other suitable manner. The in-' vention further relates to a ma gazine-box made in cylindrical i'orm, preferably of wood, with any desirable number oi magazines bored therein. This box is provided with sheet-metal caps, to avoid the spilling of the cartridges, said caps being arranged to be taken on after the box is in position. It is also furnished with handles,

. of any convenient form, to facilitatelifting it or conveying it from place to place. Itmay, it preii-rrcd, be made of shectanetal tubes, sccurcd between suitable heads. The invention further rclates to a feeding apparatus, by which the cartridges are ejected from the nmgazine-v box. The said feeding: abbaratns consists of a number of rods, one for each magazine, mounted in a suitable head, which may be pressed forward by a spring of any proper construction preferably of spiral form. The rods are point cd with rubber or other elastic material, to prevent concussion against the cartridges. Asa substitute i'orthisa-utomatic-teeding 1 p paratus having constant spring pressure, Yproposc, in

some cases, to employ a device which"will press the cartridges forward at the proper instant to fill the chambers in the revolving breech-piece and will relieve them from pressure at otheitimes. This device will be. made the subject for separate application ibr Lettcrs Patent The invention further relates to amauy-chambercd ln'eech-piece, arranged to revolve within the slotted ln'eech-plate, and made up of a number of sections or clusters of chambers, each cluster-containing chambers corresponding in numher and position to the magazine and to the barrels of the gun, as will be hereinafter described. The invention further relates to mechanlsm employed for revolving the aforesaid breech-piece. This consists of a lever, which in its upward motion, engages automaticallv with the breech-piece, and is released therefrom in its descent b v mechanism hereinaficr described. The invention further relates to de vices for locking the breech-"piece and releasin the same when it is to revolve. The inventioii further-relates to mechanism by which the aforesaid levcr may be made, in its return motion to actuate the firing devices when it. is desired to discharge the whole number of barrels simultaneously; and, further, to the particular construction of the simultaneous firing devices. The invention further relates to devices by which the barrels may, when desired. be discharged successively. The invention further relates to a device for cjecting the exploded cartridgeshells from the revolving breech-piece. "The invention further reiatcs to a mode of constructing abattery-gun with acluster of barrels scoured between suitable heads and incased in a tight cylinder, so that water may be circulated through the said -asing and around and among the lmrrels,'tbr the purpose-of keeping them cool. 1he inv cniion further relates to appliances for attching and securing the barrels and lieeping them cool. The invention further relates to devices tor clevatin g and depressing and training the gun. o i i Figure- 1 is aperspective view of a batterygun illustrating my invention. Fig. 2 is a side githdinal section thereof on the line .v .r, Figs. 4

. Fig. 6 is a section on the line 2 2, Fig. Fig. 'i

- ing disk employed to operate the firing devices to operate the firing devices. Fig. 13 is a trans :a side elevation of the same. Fi

' monform. The trail D is made ofhca-vy wroughtwhich by rods V, is firmly bolted to the breechplate it their butt-ends, screwed into apertures in the'breech-p ness, so as to be quite light, but somewhat thicker toward the breech than at the muzzle or forward ,forward end of this rod is passed through an ing a suitable screw-thread out upon it, receives anut, f, which is screwed down tightly upon -sition upon the shoulders which are formed to elevation of the same. Fig. 3 is a central lonand 5. Fig. 4 is a rear elevation. Fig. 5 isa vert cal section on the line 3 3 Figs. 2 and 3.

is a longitudinal section 'on'the line 10 10, Fig. 6. Fig. 8 is a section in the same plane, showing apportion of the chambered breech-piece one larger scale, and exhibiting, also, the preferred form of the chambers aml'cartiidgisand the manner of counter-sinking the flanges thereof in the chambers. Fig. 9 is an end view of the magazine-box. Fig. 10 is alongitudinal section of the same. Fig.11 is a face view of a revolvsuccessively. Fig. 123 is a perspective viewof a compound shaft, hereniafmr described, employed to communicate rotation to the breech-piece and verse section of a cap and shalt employed to connect or disconnect the simultaneous firing apparatus, as hercinaiter described. Fig. 14 is g. 15 is a longitudinal section thereof.

A represents an axle resting on wheels 0 and supporting a bolster'or bracket, B, through the medium of a vertical pivot, b. The gun may rest in the said bracket Bby trunnions of comirou, and is connected at its forward cud directly to the axle A. E is astationary slotted breechplate, of steel, forming a frame-work for the attachment of the bzu'rels and for. containing and properly covering the chambered breech-piece, which is revolved within the said breech-plate, as hereinafter descrihed. O is a stationary frame, connected, by a strong brace, 0, to a plate,.V,

l3. These stationary parts and their con; nectio'ns may preferably be made of steel to give them the desired strength. The barrels G G G, of which any suitable number may be used, are,

late E, and at their muzzles are inserted in 9. plate or head F, which is fitted within a cylindrical easing, d. This casingmay be cast, in brass or other metal, of moderate thickaperture in the center of the head F, aml, havthe'head, so as to secure the latter firmly in poreceive it within the forward end of the casing latter is revolved.

J and on the mnzzlcs of tho barrclsll. 'lhc iointsbctwccn thc brcm'h-plalc 1'1, casing .Lln-a F, and barn-ls (l, are all closcd \valcr-lieht by the aid of' lndia rubber or othcr suilablc packing. The barrels may be arranged in any suit able nnnmcr in parallel horizontal plain-s, so as to give them a prcciscly equal rang-c; but those on each'sidc ot' the vertical ccntcroi' the cluslcr have a slight and slightly-incrcasing divergence horizontally from said \cl'tlcal ccntcr toward each side. In the present illustration the barrels are supposed to be arrangcdat their rcar ends in concentric circles, but thcy divcrgc forward in horizontal planes to adapt them to cover any desired width of field at a given ra'ngc or distance.- This divergence should not cxcccd ten dcgrccs in the barrcls at thc cxtrcmc sidcs ot' the cluster. This will adapt. ihcm to covcr a hold of forty or fifty feet in width at a range of live hundred yards, thcshots from all the barrels being delivered approximately in onc horizontal plane. H II are water-tanks, i'iu-nishcd with pumps I, by means of which water is injected within the casing J, so as to circulate among and around the barrels, and thus kccp lhcm cool during continuous firing aml avoid the necessity of any cessation of fire for the purpose of cooling the parts. One or more of these tanks may be employed, the water being returned to the same one or delivered into another tank, it prcll-rrcd. The barrels are coated on tln-ircxtcrnal surlhccs with a suitable varnish, which will lcsist the corrosive action of watcr. K represents a (.lltlll'r bered brccch-picce rcvolviln, within the slotted breech-plate E, which brccch-platc should bccxtended at back suflicicntly to cover and close the rear of the chambers in said breech-piece as the The breech-piece K ismadc up of a number of sections, each containing a cluster of chambers, there being four such clnstors in the present illustration. The chambers in each section tan-respond in mnnbcr and position to the. barrels G, and in operation each cl uster is brought up in succession to the firing position by mechanism hereinafter described. L is the magazine-box, which may be made of wood or of sheet-metal tubes secured between suitable heads. The magazines I, whether formed of sheet-metal tubes or by boring a cylinder of wood, are made to correspond in number and position to the chambers within each of the sections of the breech-piece K. M M are caps of sheet metal, which are placed o er the ends of the magazine-box L to confine the cartridges within it, said caps being sccurcd in position by lugs or stationary buttons m. The ends of the magZazino-box are made slightly concave, as rcpresentcd in Fig. 10, so that when the cap is pressed inward, as shown III the lower part of said figln'c, and turned one-fourth round, the resilicnce, ol' the said cap will cause it to be retained firmly in position ovcr the 'artridgcs. At the upper part of the same figure the cap is shown in its flat condition before being thus dcprcsscd and sccurcd by the In In the present illustration each magazine is made to contain ten cartridges. The cartridges in themovement inmzn-ted to theshat'tQ, elm-ate ithaSimultaneous tiring devices through the me-' are. fed forward automatically by lmsher-rodsa, one to eaeh magazine, attached to a plate, N,

which is lilt'ssml l'orward by a spiral spriug, N upon the rod 1:, on whieh the plale .\'.'slides The rod )1 is secured in thestationaryframe worl; U, which constitutes a fg'llltl? orbed for the magazineliox, and should be made of steel, as

it requires to be otsuliieient strength to support the rear and operative partsot'the gun. (latches o are employed to hold the plate X and pnsherrods n in their retracted position when a depleted magazinebox is to be removed and a full one to be introdueed. The rotation ot"t-he ln'eeell-pieee ii is ett'eeted by means of a lever, l tulcri nned eom'entrieally to thesaid breeeli-piece,'andtiir nished near its ,t'ulernn with two Nllllllflflltljl'lh 1) and p, wliieh work longitu'djimll-y:upo ,said lever, and are pressed; inwardly'tow'ari it l'ulernm by their spring oi -springs. 1

The said shafts are mounted between the plate E and brace()Qamttit one within the. other, so that they may turn independently. From thet'orm ot' the teeth I] q it will be apparent that the upward motion of the lei/er will rotate the forward shatt Q and impartno rotation to therearslnit't Q, whereas the downw r motion of the lever will rotateItheshatt Q in an opposite direction and impart no motion is) Ebb toi'waidfiliai't' t0 praventfhashat't Q turning backwardsv Any backward motion of the shaft prevcnted'by twitter/w. which -loeks tlueawwolving breechpiec'e. 25's hereinafter deseribed. The rotation of the {-oryarel Shait, Q brqedi-pi'eta K, within which the said shaft isis communicated to the keyed, as illusmtedin l ig.'ti, or otherwise .1

idly secured. Ateach upward stroke of thelevu I one cluster o't chamhers which has been charged j rum iihe ma, "azine-box b is earried away therc- Prom and re aced by another empty cluster; .at

the same time a cluster whieh was previously charged is carried torw'ard int oj msition tor; ti

A downward motion ot' thc, lever then;

diam o the in'elinedram-surfaces F 3,, Fig. 3, i'ulerumed 'eeutrally at 1', eausi upper end of said lever to-draw;'baek"theirod Upon the forward end of saidrod is a head, SQ with pertorationsto receive plunger-st,wluelr:

ngevs work at, their rear ends in the stationisk or plate U, and at their liirward'ends with she ers 8, against which suitable chambers in the ln-eeeh-plate lL as'illustrateii in Fig.3, t'lllltl pressingliaeitwardaga'inst,

the shoulders t. l

For thisv purpose itis preterred to employ two independ ent springs ot spiral t'ornn 'lhestgpinsengage; respectively with ratchet-teeth q and qt upon shat'ts Q Q, the construction of whi -his shown,

. in Figs. .i and 12.

A'. pawl, q, is employed n v when carry forward the. lowerend ot ale\ r S is thrown by means of the spiral:

I re eombined form ot' 'all the springs 1 is suflieient to 'l reomo the pressure of, the mainspring s, so as, after the instant of tiring, toretraet' the ends of the plungers within the perliirations in the lu-eeeh-plate,causing their inner ends'toeome flush with the inner surface ot said plate, in order that they may oti'er no obstriietion to the rotation of the breech-piece K.

lhe sectional view of l ig. 8 shows the inanner of-eoulitersinking the eartridge-llanges within'the chambered breech-piece .K so as to cause the rear; of said ln-eeeh-pieee to work in close ,eontaet with the inner sin-thee ot' the chamber of thezbreeeh-plate l vWhen the lever it draws bat, the rod b and is again released the imf-iiionwntum ot' the. parts overcome for stant the backward pressure of the. springs lhis produces the necessary percussion upon 7 n em'tridge-flanges, after which the plungers are pressed lnu-k'ward, as before stated.

,From the above description itwill appearthat; .ilie downward stroke of the lever l will tire si- "inultaneously all the cartridges in o neeluster, andthus discharge the whole number of barrels at one instant; it itbe desired, instead of this, to discharge the barrels successively, the simultam-onstiring mechanism is discounts-ted by turning the eap .s--,tln;ough which the lever It acts upon the rod b, until the longitudinal slot if in said cap is brought into posit-ion to receive the upper end ot'.the lever It, whereby the said lever will he. caused, ,in' its motion, to pass into the said slot, and thus the drawing back jot" therod h is avoided. 'lp lock the revolving breech-piece inproper position for firing a notch, It, is formed on the periphery, of each cluster or section of the said breech-pimec. In these notches cent-shaped lever, K, .l lig. 4. This lever is fillllllll(tl a t- Ilfland is pressed inwardly by the ac- ;tion ot'-a spring, 15, to draw the catch k into the ,noteli'll' as eaehot' thesections comes into horil zontal position. llpon the lever l is a springcatch, -p' ,-\vhit l|, iuthe downward motion of the ,lever, is pressed inwa'td, and rides upon the suraee'otf the eresee ut-leverli without imparting lily motion tosaidlever. As the lever 1 reaches the downward extremity of its stroke the springeateh p'-' slipscveethe oblique end of the lever K, and. as the lever I again ascends, the springtelr' f, engaging with the said oblique end, presses thelever K horizontally out-ward, so as o'- tln-ow the catch I." outof lock with the revolving lu'eeeh-pieee theinstant het'ore'thc rotary movement is to he'impartcd to the latter.

lever K allowing the eateh Ir to restupon the periphery of the revolving ln-eeeh-pieee; and when the next section of the. said breech-piece eateh' A outward until the notch keomes oppositethe eateh It, 'when the. latter engages autoinatieally' willi said noteh, and thereby locks 1the lu'eeeli-pieee, withits upper section or cluster .olielnunlwrs, in proper position for tiring. 1: represents-a guide, of which one may be employed on each side of the lever P to cause it to move 'pnls nnparted hyzthe spring S to the head b engages a eateh, 1.", which is attached to aeres= 'lhe spring-catch p-then slips oil" the end ot'the.

eoi'nes up into horizontal position it presses the t in a proper path to operate the moan mm ire; leasing devices, in the manner above dcscribeih The section or clusterot' chambers inthe brcc'che piece K which has been discharged passes down ,vard into the horizontal position shownin Figs;- 4, 5, (i, and .7, in which position the eiccting de; vices expel the exploded shells therefrom. These devices are illustrated in Fig. 7. Y represcntsa rod, cariflving a head, Y, which works withinthe casing Y and has attached to it anumher of pins or small rods, 3 corresponding in num; her and position ,to the chambers ill each. section of the revolving breech-piece. I Z reln'csents a lever, t'ulcrumed at z, and acted upon b va spring,'- z, tending to retract the head Y, aml thereby draw the rods y within the casing". Z is a rod working within the shafts Q and Q, Fig.3, and pressedtin-ward by the lower part of thei lever R, while the upper end of said lever draws back the pin S for the purpose of retracting the firing devices. j

It will thus be apparent that the same motion of the. lever B whichret t]|cfiringdeviccstoe anew discharge operates to proiectthe pins 31', and, by their, action, to eject the exploded shells; from the. ,eha ers of thatsection ot'the breccln piece which was last discharged. A successive.

or continuous fire may be produced-by means ot'- apinion, n, rotated by a c 'anlt, r, Fig. 2., and

gearing with a coggcd disk, V. Within a cavit) in the face of said disk is a number of s n'ing-hammcrs, r", the heads of which are arf anged at distances from the center of the disk eorreslmudiug with thcmdiuscs ot'thcsueecssijire circles of barrels. The hammers are thus adapt-jed, each of them, to act.- succcssively on' all ot' the plunger-s t in one of the"concentric circles, 'lhesc hammers are actuated by cams or inclines cf, Fig. 3, which, as thedisk Y- is rotated, cause the said hammers to be retracted, and, when the are suddenly released, the r *siliencc of their spring-shanks drives the. heads tbrcibly against the rear ends of the. plungcrs t, and by this means one bari'cl in each ci'rclc ma be tired at, one time. until the whole. number has been discharged. The successive or continuous-tiring mechanismiscontained within a suitable casing, \V, constructed to adapt it to be opened, as required, for inspection, cleaning, and rcpails. All parts of the gun may be constructed to bc rcadily taken apart, and the entire structure possesses -butlit-tle complication in comparison with the etfectivcness ot; itso wration.

- In practice a suiiicicntnumber of extra hill? rels will be kept upon the field, so that, in the event of any derangement occurring, new barrels ma .bc introduced in place of injured ones. This can be rcadilyctii-cted by removing the nut and head I", screwing out the defective barrel, and replacing itby a new one.

For artillcr v service the arm may be made with a smallernumberol'rified barrelsol. largcrcalilu-r, adapted for throwingshells, the other parts be ing suitably modified. The elevation to obtain the in-cessm'v 'an'ge is regulated bya screw, X,

Fig. 3, bearing, through the medimn ot' a wheel,

hollow.

termimathe correctposition of the box.

,1, on |ts-lower end, upon the t 'ail l), and sup;

porting upon its thrcad the frame-work t), in which the magazine-box is'contain'cd,and which supports the rear of the gun. 'lhc training of the gun may be ctli-ctcd, approximatcly, through 'the medium of the trail ll, in common manner.

For accurate sighting a lever, l), is provided, said lever bcmg t'ulcrunu-d at its lowcrend in "the trail I), and engaging above in any one of the notches of a rack, 11, which is permanently fixed to the frame O. The gun is thus turned upon the vertical pivot h. Fig. ii, the whccl .rrnnning on the trail I to avoid too great friction. Instead of this device it is prctcrrcd, in some cases, to employ for t 'aining the gun a horizontal screw or a vertical shaft, carrying at its lower end a pinion working in a scgmcnt-rau-k. This "vertical shaft may be hollow, so as to surround the elevating-scrmv, or it may work concentricall vwvithin' the cle 'ating-screw, the latter being By either of these training devices an accu ate sight may be obtained, or the gun may be turned continuously, while a succcssive dis- ,cliarge-ofthe barrels is kept up, so as to deliver a sweeping tire. The training here referred to may bemadc the subject of future applicatiol'r for la-tters'latcnt. The magazine will be charged at the arsenal bvmrv suitable method. This may be perlormed by automatic n'nu-hinery provided with a longfchambered box with tubes correspomling in numbe and position with the magazines in the boxes 1.. ()nc ot'thcboxcs is placed by hand within the c 'adle or f 'anle t), the pushing devices N I: having been drawn back for this purpose. The lugs on the box, tittin g in seats prepared thcr for inthe c 'adle, act as guides or gauges to iii-- The pushcrs are then relcascd from the catches o to permit them to act upon the cartridges within the magazine-lam. As each empty section of. the revolvingbrccch-picce K comes in position :in' front of the magazine-lam the cartridges are fed forward throughapertures prepared thcrctbr.

in the'slottcd brccchplate 1' until one cartridge enters each (it the chambers. The rotary motion being then imparted to the. bria-ch-picce by the mechanism hcrcinbeloreulcscribed, the newlycharged section is carried up to a horizontal position,'and the charged section which was previouslvin thc last-named position is,atthc same time, carried upward imlliediatclwbehind the barrels in position for tiring. As each charged section is carried away from the magazine-box the. next. empty section succeeds it, and, by covering the-front of the apertures through the slotted ln'ecch-platc, prevents the lbrward movement of the cartridges or the fl-cd-rods until the said chambered section reaches its proper position,,whcn the whole number of cartridges can be fed into the chambers simultaneously. This will be undcrstm'nl when it is remembered that no cart ridge can move tin-ward without the whole number moving at the same time. The movement of. the pnshcrs to feed the cartridges forward may, as bclore stated, be communicated automatically by the spring N, or intermittingly,

at the proper periods, by a connection with the feet the discharge through all substantially as described.

. are rigidly connected together lever P or other moving part of the apparatus, which will be described in a future application for Letters Patent. The lever, having reached the upward termination of the stroke, bringing a charged section into position for firing, as before explained, is then depressed when, if the cap 8 is in the position represented in Fig. 3, the downward motion of the lever, acting through the medium of the cams q and q and lever -1t, will retract the pin S and plungers t'until the lever B, escaping fi'om the cam q, will release the rod S and permit the spring a to throw the plungers forward with a sudden impulse and ef. the barrels "of the gun. This forward movement of the lever, which retracts the rods S, imparts, at the same time, a forward movement to the rod Z, and, through the medium of the lever Z, ejects the exploded shells from the section'of the breech-piece which was last before discharged. The manner of discharging the barrels successively has been before explained. The training, .elevating, and sighting of the gun may be effected in any common or proper manner. In some cases a sighting-bar will be extended from near the muzzle to the rear part of the slottedbreech-plate, or backward beyond the breech of the gun, if it be desired to employ the pendulum-hausse.

- I claim as my invention- 1. The slotted breech plate E, constructed with perforations through the rear plate, as herein specified.

2. In a repeating gun, the stationary cradle or guide-frame O, for holding 3. The combination of the brace 0', the frame 0, and upper stationary parts, whereby the parts and aconvenient bearing for the shaft is afforded, as explained\ 4. The magazine -'box constructed with concave ends and providedwith buttons m for securing the caps M, substantially as described.

5. The combination of the slotted and perforated breech-pla-te E, the revolving breech-piece 'K adapted for the use the magazine-box L,

magazine-box 'L, and the feeder N 1:, all constructed and arranged to operate substantially as herein described, for the purposes set forth.

6. The combination of the lever 1, pawl p, shaft Q, and ratchet-teeth q, operating substantially as desc bed, to revolve the breech piece at one motion of the said lever, and to hemeleased therefrom on the return motion.

7. The combination of the lever K and catch k, operating, substantially as described, to auto matically lock the revolving breech-piece eacl time it reaches the proper position for firing.

8. The combination of the lever P and spring catch 70 with the segment-lever K and catcl k, to release the breech-piece when it is to it moved, as explained.

- 9. The shaft Q, constructed with cams or ratch ets q q, in combination with the lever P and th simultaneous-firing devices, as described. 10. The combination and relative arrangemer of the plungers t, rod S, and head S, to operai simultaneously on the cartridges, as described.

11. The cap 8 combined with the lever R an rod S, to cause the said lever to act upon-ti s'aid rod or disconnect it therefrom, as describe 12. The pinion 1:, disk V, hammers a, and car surfaces i combined to effect a successive di charge of the cartridges, substantially as d scribed.

13. The ejecting devices Y y Z Z"; operati1 substantially as described.

14. The combination of the recessed and p4 forated breech-plate E, the barrels G screw into said breech-plate, the casing J fitting back within a flange or recess in the front oft breech-plate, the head F fitting upon the ends the 'barrels and within the casing J, and the 1 F and nut j securing the parts together, 1 whole being arranged, substantially as herein scribed, to admit of cimalafinq water arou the bar'rels to keep'them cool.

-- JAMES PATTON TAYLOR -Witnesses: I

Oeuvres Karena,

of flanged cartridges, the

' WM. H. BnERnroN, Jr. 

